Headstrong -Revised Version-
by Selece's Child
Summary: Remember my old story "Headstrong"? Well, it's back! Only I'm making it better...same plot, better grammar, better chapters. Obviously, it is a CLEMI.
1. Welcome Back!

**Author's Note:** Hello everyone, still remember me? Well, I have some little news for you: first of all, sorry if I've been away for soooo long but I had a lot of things to accomplish in my life so I really didn't have time for fanfictions. The second thing is that I checked out some of my old ff and ugh, the grammar is just so _**NO.  
**_ I especially checked out "Headstrong", that I believe is my best story so far and there are so many things to fix I just don't know where to start. But the thing is that I'm going to revise it and give you a better version of the story. Same plot, better grammar, better language, better chapters.  
Some of you even sent me lovely message and I read them just now, so sorry if I didn't replied to you, but I was so pleased to discover someone actually appreciated my work, so yeah…stay tuned!  
And who knows, maybe I could even find the inspiration to write some new story…we'll see!  
Thank you for reading this, guys. You'll have the other chapters soon!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own MKR or its chapters, they belong to CLAMP

* * *

There they were again. After their graduation the girls finally met up at the Tokyo Tower, ready to leave and have a well deserved holiday in Cephiro, where they could finally spend their time together with their friends and lovers.

As usually, Hikaru was late. Umi fumed and looked at the watch at her wrist  
"everytime it's the same old story!"  
"oh, c'mon Umi, don't be so strict with her, you'll see she will be here in a fe—" her words were cut off by Hikaru's voice  
"_Gomen! Gomen!_ I'm late, I know!" she bowed in apology, trying to catch her breath.  
Fuu motherly smiled  
"don't worry, we didn't wait for long, right Umi?" the Wind Knight gave the bluette a meaningful gaze, so the girl rolled her eyes  
"yes, yes, no problem" she said, patting Hikaru's head "just let's go, ok?" she added then  
"someone is impatient" the Fire Knight, considered  
"oh really?" Fuu teased  
"enough, let's just go" Umi said, holding her friends' hands.

* * *

**-FLASHBACK-**

Despite her usual though attitude, Umi was probably the one who suffered more. Before they made the discovery that the portal wasn't sealed, the girl was constantly haunted by regret.  
Umi was beautiful, popular, brilliant, every boy wanted her and every girl wanted _to be_ her. Every girl despite Umi heself. Being an a teen ager was already difficult without having to deal with the big secret of being part of a total different world. And feelings were already complicated without having to face that she just couldn't date a normal boy of her age because "they weren't enough". And when her dearest friends asked her what she maeant, one day she grabbed the courage with both her hands and answered "I think it's quite obvious: they aren't _him_" .  
While the innocent Hikaru bet on Ascot, Fuu knew better.  
"You should have told him while you were in time"  
"I don't need someone scolding me, I already do it myself every single day, thank you very much" was the reply.  
Fuu didn't take it seriously, she knew it was Umi's way to protect herself: pretending to be fine would make her feel fine, eventually.  
But time passed and things didn't change. Umi slowly started to lose weight, her bitchy but bright personality became flat and gloomy. They have to do something.  
"you are still the Pillar, right?" Fuu asked  
"not really, I wished for Cephrian people to be the Pillar of their own world" Hikaru answered  
"you mean _everyone_?"  
"yes, everyone"  
"so Ferio and Lantis too?"  
"yes. And Clef and Ascot and Caldina and Lafarga and Sierra…everyone there"  
Fuu's face suddenly lit up. If the Knights were allowed to come back only if someone wished for it, only because they were _needed_, then they still might have a chance.  
"I have an idea!" she exclaimed, grabbing her phone  
"Umi? Let's meet to that nice patisserie in Roppongi. No, I don't care if you don't like sweets, you'll come with me and Karu. Umi, don't force me to come to your house. _Mata ne_."  
"""Luckily enough, Umi decided to join them  
"what?" she asked, seeing her friends' happy faces  
"there's still a chance we can go back" Fuu carefully started. Umi sighed and stood up  
"I should have known that. Forget it. It's over. It will never ever happen again. Life goes on, just get over it" she was going to leave the patisserie, but Hikaru grabbed her arm  
"Umi-chan, please. Give us one last chance. I know you wish to come back just like us...maybe even more"  
"I have nothing left there. Nothing. I don't care about the possibilities we have to find a way to open the portal, ok? I'm out of this"  
"You are selfish" Fuu said. Her voice was icy.  
"and you are discoverying it just now?" the bluette replied, rising an eyebrow  
"yes, because I thought we knew you better, but we are wrong. If you can't even find the strenght to put aside your fears and delusions to help your friends to go back to the people they love just because you are afraid to face the business you left unfinished there, then you are really one of the worse people I know. Please Umi, prove me wrong" the Wind Knight knew that going hard on the Water Knight, putting it on the friendship side, was the only way to make her reason.  
"I'm sorry" Umi just whispered, grabbing her bag and going away.  
"What should we do now?" Hikaru asked, Fuu sighed and sipped some hot chocolate  
"we finish our cake and go to the Tower"  
"are you mad?" the blond girl smiled knowingly  
"I just know Umi" she replied.

Half an hour later, the girls went to the Tower. Fuu smiled when she saw her friend standing in front of the window, right in the spot where the portal used to open.  
She lightly placed a hand on Umi's shoulder. The bluette didn't even bother to turn to look at her, she knew what was going on  
"what if things don't go the way I wish?" she asked  
"what if they do?" Umi slowly turned her head to look at her friends.  
"promise me that you'll be there if anything goes wrong" Hikaru smiled  
"we are by your side"  
"promise?" Hikaru showed her pinkie  
"_yubikiri genman_!" Umi smiled and entwined her finger with Hikaru's, Fuu smiled and joined her friends  
"ok, let's try then"

The three girls held their hands together and closed their eyes  
_Please, please please let it work…_  
A bright flash surrounded them.  
"Hey! Look up!" Caldina exclaimed, seeing a bright light suddenly appearing in the sky  
Ascot held his breath  
"can you sense it?"  
"yes!" Ferio's voice exclaimed as the Prince run in the yard of the castle  
"summon a beast, hurry!" the dancer exclaimed, but before the boy could cast the spell, Ferio was already on his griffin.

"We're gonna die!" Umi cried, as they fell from the sky "where the hell is that stupid fish?!"  
"we won't die, we won't die, we won't die! Please not now that we're back!" Fuu pleaded  
"Help!" Hikaru exclaimed  
"Got you!" Fuu opened her eyes to find herself gazing in Ferio's green ones.  
"It is you!" the Wind Knight exclaimed, wrapping her arms around his neck  
"in flesh and bones, beauty!" the girl blushed  
"hey, we're here as well, y'know!" Umi snapped.  
The boy turned  
"oh Ryuuzaki, welcome back! Karu-chan, it's nice to see you!"  
"stop the greetings and just get us on the ground, for Selece's sake" the bluette exclaimed.  
Fuu shrudded and blushed as Ferio smiled to her, passing an arma round her waist  
"ok ladies, get ready to land!"

Once at the castle, much to Hikaru and Umi's disappointment, the girls discovered that Lantis and Clef were in Chizeta for a diplomatic mission and they wouldn't be back before the end of the week.  
"that's unfair" Hikaru whined  
"well sweetie, at least you know that the portal is still open so you can come to visit your dark knight whenever you want!" Caldina exclaimed  
"ah, yeah…right…" the Fire Knight commented, her face flushing red.  
"Hey Little Mermaid" Caldina then turned to Umi  
"what?" she snapped, clearly deluded  
"there's someone who wants to greet you!" she pushed Ascot towards the Water Knight  
"Ascot!" the girl literally lunched herself in his arms  
"he-hem-I-..."  
"he meant hello Umi-chan I'm so happy to see you, you can't even imagine how much I missed you" the dancer said, winking.

It was a nice day, but Fuu reminded everyone that they had to be back to Tokyo "very soon because we have an important test at school tomorrow"  
"Will I see you again?" Ferio seriously asked, she smiled  
"of course you will"  
"when?"  
"when the finals are over. It will be three months on Earth"  
"but it's such a long time!" the Prince pointed out  
"I know...but please, wait for me" the boy sighed  
"I've been waiting so long without even being sure you'd come back... I think I can handle this" he said, holding Fuu's hand and lighly kissing her fingertips.

From that moment on, life in Tokyo got easier for everyone of them. Umi came back to her old self, Fuu allowed herself to daydream some more, Hikaru didn't stop talking about she couldn't wait to meet Lantis again. They had to wait only three months.

**-END OF FLASHBACK-**

* * *

_Crash!_

Their landing wasn't as soft as they hoped. No flying fishes, no griffins, no magical beasts, only the braches of some tree in the middle of the Forest of Silence.  
"ouch!" Hikaru whined, rubbing the back of her head  
"this surely is unusual" Fuu commented, trying to fix her glasses  
"I hope someone has a good explanation for all this!" angrily, Umi exclaimed "your stupid Prince could send one of his griffins!" Fuu rolled her eyes  
"well, usually it's Clef who provides not to have us breaking our necks over crash landings" she commented  
"that Master Mage! Just let me put my hands on him!"  
"oh you wish!" Fuu exclaimed, before she could stop herself  
"I'm going to pretend you never said it!" the Water Knight barked, trying to climb down from the top of the tree.  
A loud ripping sound came from her blouse and she ended up on the ground  
"oh no, this didn't just happened!" she shouted, clearly angr.  
The other two burst in laughing  
"on the contrary, I'm afraid it just happened!" Fuu commented, helping Hikaru to get down a branch  
"there's nothing to laugh at! That was my favourite blouse and it was frigging expansive!"  
Hikaru patted her friend's back  
"c'mon Umi-chan, you can have all the blouses you want when we get back in Tokyo, but aren't you dying to see everyone now?" the bluette looked at the castle. It was shining in the sunlight and its edges were streching skywards.  
"Let's go, I'm so going to yell at someone for what just happened!" Fuu sighed  
"Holy Windam, this will lead to no good"

* * *

"Not bad your highness, but you have to do better" Lantis smirked and blocked Ferio's attack

"oh sorry if I'm not the greatest swordsman around!" Ferio replied.  
The soldier took advantage of Ferio's distraction to fence and made the Prince lose the grasp on his sword. The weapon landed not too far from them  
"first lesson: a good fencer never gets caught out of guard" a female voice teased the boy.  
Before he could even open his mouth to reply, he found the Wind Knight in his arms  
"you are back!" he happily exclaimed  
"I promised I would" she whispered, blushing. The Prince quickly kissed her, then turned to the other Knights  
"I'm so happy to see you all, well you all except Ryuuzaki, why didn't you stay in Tokyo?"  
"ah ah ah, you're so funny for being a Prince who can't even fence!"  
"oh shut up Little Mermaid, I can beat you using only my left hand"  
"yeah, dream on!" the Water Knight commented  
"it's a matter of fact! And by the way, is that the last fashion trend on Earth? Because your blouse is so nice really!" he teased  
"oh shut up, you could have at least send us your stupid griffin!"  
"my griffin is not stupid! And I didn't sense you coming, usually is our Master Mage who takes care of this stuff!"  
"talking of this, I'm going to personally complain to him, you'll excuse me!"  
Ferio and Fuu exchanged a quick glance  
"this is not going to end well, right?"  
"right" the girl confirmed.

* * *

"I hope you have a good excuse for what just happened!" the doors of his study bursted open and she made her way to his desk.  
When was it the last time he saw her? Probably two years ago. She had changed a lot, she wasn't a child anymore, she was a beautiful girl now, like a flower in full bloom.  
"Umi, it's long time we don't meet, I'm happy to see you again as well" he didn't even know he could pull out this sarcasm  
"whatever, look!" she barked.  
He used all his self control not to burst in laughing at the dust on her cheeks, the leaves in her hair and the huge scratch on her blouse. Probably the Knights didn't have a pleasing landing  
"oh hum...what should I look at, excactly?"  
"are you kidding me?! Look what have you done!"  
"Me? May I ask you how am I supposed to be responsible of your failed battle against a tree?" he asked, taking a leaf away from her bang  
"where was your stupid fish while I crashed against a tree?"  
"hum, probably resting inside my staff? And please, be nice to Fyuula, it isn't its fault"  
"of course it wasn't, it was your fault! Why didn't you summon it?!"  
"I was working, because this is what I usually do during the day, you know? And I didn't sense you Knights coming"  
"you didn't?! You always do!"  
"I apologize but I was very busy" the girl fumed and grabbed the book he was reading  
"busy? It's just a stupid book!"  
Ok, that was enough. He was happy, _very _happy, to see her again, but breaking his peace complaining as a spoiled child and isulting his magic beast and his precious books was too much for their first meeting afer two years.  
"my child, in case you forgot it, I'm the Master Mage and these stupid books you see" he made a wide gesture, pointing the whole library "are my work. So yes, I was busy with this book, because I have the official duty to revise it"  
"I'm not a child!" the Master Mage rose an eyebrow  
"yes, your behaviour totally shows it"  
"when did it happen that you got such a brilliant sarcasm?" she asked, clearly annoyed  
"Umi, I have a lot of work to do so please get out of my study"  
"we just met after two years and you're already kicking me out of this room. So nice!"  
"I put all my efforts to properly welcome you, despite your pointless accusations, but I haven't the time to catch up with your arguements right now, so please go away and come back when you feel like stopping to act like a childish, spoiled brat"  
He almost could feel the air in the library getting as cold as ice, before Umi stormed away slamming the doors behind her.  
Clef mentally cursed himself, it didn't go exactly as he hoped or expected, but it was Umi. And Umi was everything but predictable. He sighed and rested his back against the chair, at least he had just made the Water Knight speechless for the very first time.

* * *

Umi walked to her room and slammed the door behind her. Why the hell did she behaved like that?! It wasn't supposed to end in this way! But above all, how did Clef dare to use that arrogant tone with her?! She had decided to come back for him, after all! And how could he call her "childish" when he was the one who decided to stay chained in the body of a twelve years old kid?!  
"that's ridiculous!" she exclaimed, filling the bathtub. When it was full of water, she dipped in it and closed her eyes, relaxing a bit.  
The old Mage wanted a "mature" Umi? Well, just had to wait 'till dinner and she would have make him swallow back all that idiocies he blabbered.


	2. Changes

**Disclaimer:** MKR belongs to CLAMP blah blah blah

**Notes: **thank you for the lovely comments, I didn't expect people to read this story again! Hope you're actually finding it better than the old version!

* * *

**- CHAPTER TWO: _Changes_ -**

Perfect.  
Umi looked at her reflection in the mirror and swung her hips. Then she turned her back to it to check the actual lenght of her skirt and smirked, saisfied. Her moment of self appreciation was cut off by an insistent knocking at her door  
"Umi chan, it's late!" Hikaru's voice exclaimed from the hallway  
"just one moment!" she said, unbottoning her shirt to make her neckline even more plugging.  
"Umi!" Fuu's voice was impatient, so the bluette fumed  
"oh come in already!"

"What the-?!" Hikaru's mouth hung open  
"isn't it cool?" the bluette asked, placing a hand on her hip.  
Fuu looked at her and breathed deeply.  
"What is this...outfit...supposed to mean?"  
"I wanted to get rid of my spoiled schoolgirl look...you know, I want to look more sophisticated" the Water Knight nonchalantly explained.  
The blonde girl slowly rose an eyebrow  
"right" she said, gracefully sitting on her friend's bed. Then she exchanged a glance with Hikaru, who did the same  
"hem, I'm not trying to kick you out or anything but weren't we late?" Umi asked, confused  
"we have still a little bit of time" the Wind Knight said, beckoning her friend to join them on the bed. The bluette rolled her eyes and sat down between the two girls.  
Fuu gave a disappointed look at the edge of Umi's skirt, barely covering her upper thighs "what, _mom_?" the Water knight spat, the blonde was going to reply but Hikaru stopped her  
"Umi chan, are you sure there's nothing you want to tell us?" the bluette rose an eyebrow  
"what should I tell you exactly?"  
"I don't know, maybe the reason why you literally disappeared for the whole evening right after you went to pay a visit to Clef?" Fuu sarcastically asked back  
"do you really think that old mage has this influence on me?"  
"hem...yes?" Hikaru answered. Umi just glared at her  
"bullshi—"  
"this is not the way a sophisticated young lady talks" Fuu rebuked her  
"oh please, can we just get over this nonsensical stuff and go downstairs to meet the others for dinner?"  
" 'nonsensical' is exactly what I was thinking about this look" the Wind Knight muttered aloud  
"I heard you!"  
"well, I wanted you to do it"  
"Umi chan" Hikaru interrupted them "don't you think your clothes are a bit too..._extreme_?"  
"it's not only a matter of clothes" Fuu poined out  
"what do you mean?" the Water Knight asked, almost indignant.  
The Wind Knight rolled her eyes and took a tissue  
"stay away from me!" Umi exclaimed  
"shut up, I'm trying to help you!" Fuu lost her temper and grabbed her friend's arm  
"no! no! please this make up took me hours of work! No!"  
Too late.  
Fuu quickly brushed it all over her face. It got a huge bronze stain.  
"too much even for some _gyaru_" she commented, shaking her head.  
Umi look at her reflection in the mirror: there was a pale stripe right on her right cheek  
"watch what you did!" she shouted  
"I was going to say the very same thing to you!" the Water Knight yelled back  
Hikaru looked in shock at the two of them  
"please, stop this!" she exclaimed, her hands covering her ears "we should all be happy to be back _home_!"  
"open your eyes little girl, this is not _home_!" Umi shouted.  
An icy silence spread inside the room  
"Ryuuzaki Umi, wear proper clothes and come to dinner" Fuu hissed  
"or _what_?"  
"or don't bother to come around again, next time"  
"well, maybe there won't be a next time! I could even go back to Tokyo!"  
"if that's what you want I won't beg you to stay here" the Wind Knight replied  
"Fuu chan!" Hikaru was clearly upset  
"if she doesn't feel part of this country there's no reason to stay, right?"  
"Fuu chan this makes no sense, what are you saying? We should stay toge—"  
"Enough with all this, Hikaru. Now let's go, Ferio and Lantis are waiting for us" she put emphasis on the last part of the sentence "have a safe trip back home and call us when you are able to reason again without behaving like some bitchy schoolgirl" she added, glaring at Umi and leading the Fire Knight out of the room.

* * *

Clef sighed.  
Arguing with Umi wasn't exactly what he had in mind for their first encounter after so many years, but keeping calm with that girl around was a real challenge to him.  
Umi was blunt and temperamental, outspoken and irritating. And still she was so fragile and insecure that she needed to yell at everyone to somehow feel safe.  
The mage locked his corn around his forehead and grabbed his staff. For the first time in centuries, he felt extremely embarassed to look up at the lion shaped edge of the his bestow. Being the most powerful sorcerer of the country he surely didn't have to use his physical look to make people remember what his magic skills could do, so he was fine with looking a twelve years old boy. But lately, seeing how the Magick Knights had grown through the years, realizing how Umi was no more a little schoolgirl but a beautiful young woman, it made him feel so…so…_inadequate_.  
A lot of things had changed in Cephiro, maybe it was time to make a change himself.  
He looked at the huge mirror on the wall of his chamber and almost felt piety for the little kid staring back at him.  
After seven centuries it was time to change.  
Slowly, he walked to his cupboard and opened a small drawer. Inside it there was only an elaborate silver chest, with azure and purple gems on it and a lion head shaped golden lock.  
_It's time_ he thought, lightly waving his staff and making a lion head shaped golden key appear in his hand.  
With a trembling touch, he opened the chest. Inside there was only a small vial filled with a golden liquid.  
Slowly, the Master Mage uncorcked it and small sparkles formed on the top of the vial.  
Clef stared at the potion for a good minute before finally drink it in one sip.  
_There's no turning back now_ he thought, forcefully shutting his eyes.  
Warmth spread across his small body. It was like having waves forcefully crashing in the inner depth of his soul. His bones started hurting so much that for a moment the thought that even death would have been a good escape to that kind of pain.  
Suddenly, a bright flash wrapped around his tiny body and the pain got sharper. He felt like screaming with all the air in his lungs but no sound came out of his mouth.  
The warmth left place to a piercing cold and finally the flash dimmed and the pain ceased.  
He found himself panting and shivering on his knees.  
Clef looked at his hand resting on the marble floor of his inner chamber: his fingers weren't small and plump anymore, now they looked long and tapered. Slowly, almost afraid of what he'd felt there, he rose them to his face: he could perfectly sense his now prominent cheekbones under his touch.  
The Master Mage breathed deeply and gathered all the courage he had, then he rose his stare towards the mirror.  
There was no twelve years old kid to look back at him.

* * *

"Good evening" Fuu politely bowed as she stepped inside the dining room.  
Everyone turned to look at her and Hikaru, who was standing behind her.  
Before the girls knew it, Caldina literally jumped in their arms, bombardind them with a lot of _how I missed you! You grew up so much! I'm so happy you're back!_  
Struggling, the Fire Knight got free from Caldina's hug and walked to Presea.  
The smith smiled to her favourite Knight and welcomed her with a warm embrace  
"you look so beautiful now" she commented in a motherly way, while stroking Hikaru's ruby mane  
"thank you, I missed you so much" the girl answered  
"me too darling, I'm so happy to have you here with us again" .

"Hey, is it just me or someone is missing?" Ferio asked aloud  
"ah yes, Umi isn't exactly in the right mood now" Fuu explained, approaching him and holding his hand  
"what?! She comes back after so many years and she isn't in the right mood?! C'mon girls, go upstairs and bring her here!"  
"I don't think it's a good idea" Hikaru sadly replied.  
"What is not a good idea?" a deep voice asked.  
Everyone turned to look at the tall figure standing in the doorway. An awkward silence filled the room.  
"you did it" Presea whispered. All the people in the room turned to look at her  
"Presea, what does this mean?" Hikaru asked, clearly confused, hiding behind Lantis as the tall man approached her.  
"it's me" he just said. The Fire Knight looked at the man before her and then looked at Lantis. The swordsman nodded and a thin, rare smile formed on his lips.  
"Clef?" the girl asked in awe  
"yes, it's me"  
Curious, Fuu approached the Master Mage and looked at him straight in the eyes  
"this was unexpected" she eventually commented with a wide smile.  
"sorry everyone, I didn't mean to startle you" he apologized aloud. His eyes searched Umi among the crowd but the Water Knight was nowhere to be seen.  
What happened? Where was she? Maybe she was just late and...  
Presea's stare on him ended his thoughts. He smiled to the woman and slowly walked towards her  
"you used the potion" she whispered "you know there's no turning back now" the Master Mage nodded  
"it was time"  
"why right now?" the woman asked  
"everything is changing, we must look forward" he answered, lightly placing a hand on her shoulder.

* * *

The dinner was served and everyone sat at the table.  
"Where's Umi?" Clef suddenly asked, biting a slice of bread  
"she isn't feeling well" Hikaru answered  
"didn't you say she wasn't in good mood?" Ferio asked  
"hem...she isn't in good mood because she wasn't feeling well?" the Fire Knight stammered  
"you tried" the King said, then looked at Fuu "what's wrong?"  
"she stayed in her room that's all" the Wind Knight explained, sipping some water.  
Clef studied the expression of the two Knights at the other side of the table, then looked at the empty chair in front of him. Something wasn't right.

When the dinner ended, the Master Mage approached Fuu  
"excuse me, may I talk to you in private?" he asked  
"yes, of course" the Wind Knight answered.  
They went outside, in the garden, and Fuu sat on the edge of the fountain  
"so, I suppose it's about Umi" the mage nodded  
"you've always been the smart one" he proudly commented  
"ah, there's no need to be smart to understand you're worried"  
"indeed I am, what happened?"  
"we argued" the sorcerer looked at the Wind Knight with diesbelief in his eyes  
"you don't simply argue"  
"well, apparently it happens, sometimes"  
"how can you talk so lightly about this?"  
"you know Umi better than me, better than anyone in the world, the only way to make her reason is talking straight to her"  
"what did you tell her?"  
"to call us when she is able to behave like any normal girl instead of a bitchy schoolgirl"  
The Master Mage sighed aloud  
"I kind of told her the same thing this afternoon"  
"I knew it"  
"did she talked about it?"  
"no, but she blabbered something about looking like a sophisticated young woman" Clef shook his head and looked up towards the Water Knight's balcony.  
"Umi is trying hard to show that she changed, that she isn't the complaining little girl you met the first time we landed here" Fuu commented  
"I know" the Master Mage replied, and for a brief moment his eyes showed the deepest affection for the Water Knight.  
The Wind Knight sweetly smiled  
"You know, Clef, she cherishes you so much" Fuu admitted "she just doesn't know how to deal with all this" the mage stayed silent, musing over those words.  
Eventually, he spoke  
"you and Hikaru are very precious to her, please don't leave her. Stay by her side"  
Fuu nodded  
"everything will work out tomorrow, I'm sure" she mused aloud  
"I know it will" Clef agreed, placing a hand on the Wind Knight's shoulder and keeping his eyes on Umi's balcony.


	3. Enemies

**Disclaimer:** MKR belongs to CLAMP everyone knows that.

**Notes:** Your reviews make me happy! Thank you!

* * *

**- CHAPTER 3: _Enemies_ -**

He sighed.  
That law was so old and pointless by now, who cared about Pillar's duties when now there was no Pillar around?  
The thought of his former pupil made him smile. Was she happy now?  
Without even realizing it, he stood up and walked outside, to his balcony.  
_Did your wish come true, Emeraude?_  
A gentle rain started to fall.  
His eyes drifted to the other side of the Palace, to the wing where the Magic Knights' chambers were. If Fuu's words were true, Umi had to be pretty upset.  
The girls were so young the first time they came to Cephiro, and yet they menaged not only the save the world, but even to tie up a strong bound between them.  
How many years had passed now? How many things had changed?  
How much _he_ was changed?  
He looked at his hand, so different from the chubby and childish hand he was used to.  
At a certain point in life, change was the only option left. It was the natural thing to do.

Suddenly, his magic sensed something in the air. Or was it someone? Well, whatever it was, its aura was strong.  
_Strong and dark_ he thought, lifting his head up to look at the sky, searching for the source of that new, disturbing presence.  
A loud shriek made him turn.  
A huge, black griffin heavily landed in front of him and a man, all wrapped up in a black cloack, climbed down from the beast. Only his eyes were visible: they were green and bright and the shadow the Master Mage read in their depth wasn't a good sign.  
"King Ferio?" the man asked, walking towards him.  
Clef smirked  
"who's looking for him?" the stranger smirked back and briefly bowed his head.  
With a fast movement of his arm, the man got rid of his cloack, revealing his identity  
"Arashi, King of Iris"  
The sorcerer studied his guest: by his posture and body, he had to be a warrior. And a very strong one.  
The purple gem on his staff gleamed as the stranger approached him. Definitely, it wasn't a good sign, now it was clear the man also possessed very powerful magic skills.  
"Iris you said? I heard of it, your Country is close to Chizeta isn't it?"  
"Not many people know about it, looks like the rumors about you aren't reliable" Arashi smirked  
"rumors?"  
"ah yes, well, people say that the King of Cephiro is...how can I say it without sounding rude? _Uneducated_"  
Clef glared at his guest  
"I don't know who told you so, but I can assure you that our King is a learned man. Just like each one of my pupils, after all"  
At those words, Arashi's eyes lit up with new interest  
"so you must be—"  
"_Madoushi_ Clef, right"  
Much to the Master Mage disappointment, the King nodded and smirked, then walked right inside the study and sat in front of the desk  
"I don't remember I ever let you in" Clef commented, walking in as well  
"oh but I'm sure you won't kick me out, causing a huge diplomatic incident"  
The sorcerer gave in and sat at his desk  
"so, what do you want?"  
"how can I say it? Ummm...I want _this_" he opened his arms, suggesting their whole surronding. Clef rose an eyebrow  
"my library?" the King laughed  
"Cephiro"  
Clef looked at him with wide eyes  
"excuse me?"  
"you heard it, Master Mage"  
the sorcerer hardly kept a laugh  
"this is ridiculous"  
"not really. Now, follow my reasoning: Chizeta is getting new colonies so it's just matter of time before they attack us."  
"no offense, but your Country is very small and the territory is not the ideal place to build up an organized society such as Chizeta's, so I doubt the Princesses would be interested in making you one of their colonies"  
"wrong. There's a lot you don't know about Iris, our Country is an endless well of resources, you just have to discover how to get their benefits. Anyway, if Chizeta attacks us, we have no chance by now, if you consider that Cephiro would line up with the Princesses, and this would bring in Eagle Vision's army and Princess Aska's sorcerers as well."  
Clef sighed  
"I can assure you that Cephiro has no intention to face a new war. This Country already suffered enough"  
"it maybe as you say, but as King I must think to the good of my own country and you are clearly a menace. Give me this country and no one will get hurt"  
"this is pointless, Cephiro belongs solely to its habitants, what makes you think we'll bent to you like this?"  
Arashi smirked and with a gesture summoned a dark puff of smoke in his palm  
"look, Master Mage" a lot soldiers appeared inside the puff: they were training with huge swords and magic as well "this is my army, one of the most powerful of this dimension, you don't really want to challenge my men" Clef glared at the man  
"I won't be impressed by an army, I saw and fought so many wars that it almost bores me"  
the King smirked and nodded, then clenched his palm, summoning back the puff  
"and what about magic? My powers are beyond human imagination, Clef_"_ the gem on the staff gleamed again, so the _Madoushi_ held it tight, until it dimmed  
"I am _Master_ Clef, and probably you forget that no one can touch the powers of the Master Mage of Cephiro, I could kill a thousand of men just by snapping my fingers"  
"you could, but you won't do it"  
"what makes you think so?"  
"your spirit. I can sense it, it is too pure for all this"  
Clef clenched his fist  
"you said yourself that Iris can't afford a war"  
"I said Iris can't afford a war against Cephiro, Chizeta, Autozam and Fahren, it's different"  
"our army is very powerful"  
"I don't doubt it, I had the pleasure to meet Lantis years ago...if he's the leader of your army, your men are surely dreadful"  
"indeed they are. And we have the—"  
"Magic Knights? Three little girls are very fearful" he sarcastically commented  
"they have the power of our deities within them"  
"Too bad that I've never been a religious man"Arashi replied in a smirk.  
Clef slammed his fist on the desk  
"that's enough! Out of my library and out of my Country!" the King didn't move from the chair  
"I won't go away until I've talked to Ferio"  
"His Majesty is sleeping, there's no way I will disturb him for such an idiocy!"  
"this is not an idiocy, this is a war" Arashi coldly replied with a smirk on his lips "but I'm a reasonable man, so I will accept to be your guest until morning, when I am able to talk to your King"  
"what makes you think I will give you hospitality?"  
"you are already on the verge of a war, I'm sure you are smart enough not to make things worse"  
The gem on the staff gleamed again, this time more brightly.  
Clef clenched his fist  
"I'll show you your chamber".

* * *

Umi turned over her bed again.  
She wasn't sure if she was feeling cold or hot, but the thing is that she was sweating and chilling at the same time.  
She reached out to the water pitcher on the night table and, without even bothering to pour the water in a glass, drank a huge sip. Then she hid her head under her pillow and tried to sleep again.  
Useless.  
_No, not the first night here after ages._  
_And not right after an arguement.  
_Maybe she only needed some fresh air.  
She wore her nightgown and walked outside to her balcony.  
All the lights in the castle were turned off. All the lights but the dim ones coming from the windows of the hallways and the one of Clef's library.  
_When will he stop working this late?_  
There was a part of her who desperately wanted to burst in his study and make him stop reading those damn papers. She wanted to go there, sit in front of his desk and watch him preparing the potion he used to give her.  
She nostalgically remembered the nights spent in his library. During those times she could allow herself to be nothing more than a fourteen years old girl.  
And he never teased her. He never made her feel inadequate. He was always supporting, gentle, kind. He was the only one who bothered to look deep inside her, the only one who didn't stop at her icy façade. He walked through her walls and teared them down.  
When he was beside her she felt alive. She was _herself_.  
She looked down at her hand and for a moment she could feel the warmth of his palm.  
A gentle rain started falling from the sky and she bitterly smiled.  
Falling in love was so easy, why dealing with all those feelings had to be so hard?  
Umi sighed.  
A lot of things have changed since the last time they met. Why couldn't she change as well? She was trying so hard, but every attempt was useless.  
Even Clef, being the patient man he was, now was sick and tired of her.  
What if, despite her feelings, leaving Cephiro forever was the only solution?

A loud shriek caught her attention.  
She looked up and saw a black griffin landing on Clef's balcony.  
Two tall figures were arguing, until one of them retired in the library.  
Immediately, the other one walked after and closed the door of the balcony and the curtains. Now she couldn't see anything.

Who were those people? What were they doing in the castle? Where was Clef? What if he was in danger?  
Without thinking twice, she grabbed her magic glove and, placing it in the pocket of her nightgown, run to the library.

* * *

She burst in wthout even knocking on the door  
"Clef!"  
but much to her surprise, the library was empty.  
"Clef? Where are you? Clef!" she looked for him everywhere, but the Master Mage was nowhere to be seen.  
Umi bit her lower lip and wore her glove, then left the room.  
There was something wrong going on there, and she had no intention to let it go. If Clef was in trouble, she wanted to help him.  
Suddenly, a tall figure appeared in the distance. The Water Knight held her breath and summoned her sword  
"Who's there?" she asked, sticking her rapier out  
"Umi?" the figure stepped closer, in to the light of the chandelier.  
There was a clanging noise as Selece's sword fell on the floor and Umi's hands flew to her mouth  
"you..." she whispered, he gently smiled  
"yes, it's me" he bent down to pick up the sword, but it turned in to water "ah, right...I forgot it" he said.  
Umi lightly moved her hand, summoning the weapon back. Clef looked at the glove  
"why are you wandering around the castle in the middle of the night and with your magic glove on?"  
"I...I saw something strange and I wanted to make sure everything was ok"  
"something strange?"  
"who came to your library?" she asked  
"ah. I...well, you see..." he hesitated  
"Clef, what's wrong?"  
"nothing is wrong, Umi. Don't worry"  
"who was that man, then? The one with the gryffin?"  
"just a diplomatic visit"  
"in the middle of the night?"  
"I told you everything is alright, stop it" he mentally cursed himself, he did it again.  
"sorry, I didn't mean to be rude to you" the sorcerer apologized, lightly placing a hand on Umi's shoulder. He felt her tensing under his touch.  
"it's ok, I shouldn't be so nosey" he smiled  
"come with me"

* * *

He led her to his library and summoned a chair for her  
"thank you" she said, gracefully sitting down.  
Clef studied her: she looked pale and there were dark circles under her eyes  
"what's worrying you?" she bitterly smiled  
"some things will never change, right?" he sighed  
"sometimes changes are good, but it doesen't mean we are forced to do it"  
"you did it" she whispered, the Master Mage smiled  
"maybe in this way you will think twice before yelling at me" she smiled as well  
"I'm sorry. I'm so loud and blunt and bitchy and sharp and..." Clef's hand on hers made her silent  
"it's you and it's perfectly fine"  
Umi looked at him, then at their hands. It seemed perfect, but somehow her heart crashed and she retired her hand  
"liar" the Mage looked at her in disbelief  
"what?"  
"liar" she repeated "it's not fine! It has never been! I know what everyone thinks, I'm sorry to be _like this!" _now she was almost shouting  
"Umi, what are you saying?"  
"I swear I want to change, but I can't, ok? I'm trying, but all my efforts are useless!"  
Clef held her hand again  
"No" his eyes pierced her "this is you, and there's nothing wrong with it, Umi. You can't force yourself to change, it happens gradually. There's nothing you have to change about you"  
"lies!" she exclaimed, breaking free from his hand and standing up "sorry for disturbing you, it won't happen again"  
"Umi wait!" the sorcerer grabbed her arm  
"let me go!"  
"Umi, look at me!"  
Maybe it was because now he was way taller than her, maybe because his grasp was way stronger than it used to be when he looked like a kid, maybe because his voice now was lower and deeper than how it used to be, but she found herself obeying.  
As her eyes met his, she shivered.  
"Clef, please" she whispered  
"Umi, listen..."  
"please...good night" he sighed and gave in, letting her go  
"good night, Umi."


	4. The Stranger

**Disclaimer****:** MKR and its amazing characters belong to CLAMP. blah blah blah whatever.

**Notes:** I know this took me way too long and I'm sorry. But please, be patient and enjoy this chapter. Love Love!

* * *

**-CHAPTER 4: _The Stranger_-**

The sun was high enough to get out of the bed and pretend she had a peaceful sleep that night.  
Umi sighed and looked at her reflection in the mirror: despite her best intentions, those dark circles under her eyes were definitely going to betray her.  
_Oh screw it all, whatever_ she thought, combing her hair in a long plait.

"Umi chan!" Hikaru exclaimed, as the Water Knight joined the others for breakfast  
"'morning" she muttered, taking place beside Caldina  
"Umi, good morning" Fuu greeted her friend, Umi just made a quick hello with her hand.  
"Are you ok?" Caldina asked  
"yeah, just still half asleep" the bluette commented, covering her yawning mouth with her hand  
"I slept awfully as well" Hikaru admitted "I felt so guilty for what happened yesterday" Umi shook her head  
"it's ok, friends fight sometimes, right?"  
"right" Fuu agreed with a warm smile, quickly squeeziong her friend's hand.  
"Talking of friends, as one of your closer peeps, let me tell you that your face looks scary, this morning" Caldina commented, biting what looked like a slice of bread with some purple jelly on its top.  
"oh thanks" the bluette snorted, rolling her eyes  
"did something happen, Umi chan?" Hikaru asked, worried  
"no, no...everything is fine" Fuu skeptically rose an eyebrow  
"yeah right" she muttered  
"what was that?"  
"nothing" she innocently replied, sipping some tea.  
In that moment Ferio approached them  
"Hey Ryuuzaki!" he patted the Water's Knight back  
"ouch! Give it a rest!"  
"ah, so lovely already" he commented, taking place beside Fuu  
"'morning" he greeted the Wind Knight, giving her a quick peck on the lips.  
Fuu blushed  
"so, looks like someone had a hard night here, ne?" he asked, looking at Umi  
"excuse me?"  
"oh c'mon, let me guess the scene: you can't sleep, go to Clef to have a potion or anything, you argue and you go away without potion so you spend all the night wide awake cursing the old mage"  
Umi's mouth hung open  
"I—I...that's ridiculous!" the bluette barked, her cheeks flashing red  
"_touchè_" Ferio said in a smirk, biting a slice of bread  
"well, that would explain why the Guru is not here with us" Caldina commented  
"oh please, he surely is working on some stupid old paper" Umi replied, crossing her arms  
"there's only one way to find out" the dancer commented, handing to Umi a tray with a cup of tea and some food  
"oh I know what you're trying to do, no way!" she exclaimed  
Fuu sighed  
"oh c'mon Umi chan..." Hikaru whined  
"no!" Caldina sighed  
"'kay blue beauty, you want to play hard? Fine" she turned to the other side of the room  
"Presea, honey, would you mind come here a moment?"  
"you can't do this!" Umi hissed  
"too late"  
The smith approached them  
"good morning" she greeted everyone  
"hi" Umi snorted  
"Umi! I didn't met you yesterday, I was worried"  
_Yeah right_ the bluette thought.  
Almost reading her mind, Fuu poked her side  
"be nice" she hissed.  
"I was tired, but I'm ok now"  
"I'm glad to hear that"  
"so, Caldina, is there something you wanted to tell me?"  
"actually yes, I thought you could..."  
"talk to me a little, it's soooo long we don't meet, ne?" Umi asked, literrally dragging Presea down to a chair. Caldina and Ferio hardly held back a laugh, while the other Kinghts looked at their friend in disbelief.  
The smith smiled  
"ah it's true, how have you been?"  
"pretty good, I think...I missed this place and I missed all of you, but I'm fine"  
"I'm happy you girls are back" Presea said, widely smiling to all the Kinghts  
"thank you! So, how about you?"  
"I'm ok, same old life. I make weapons, even if we really don't need them right now. Actually it is Lantis who gives me a lot of work to do"  
"really?" Hikaru asked  
"yep! He always complains about the blade of his sword, it's getting sooo boring! I think I will forge a new one for him"  
"that would be wonderful!" Hikaru happily exclaimed, clapping her hands.  
Calidna sighed  
"Oh my Pillar! I didn't realize it's already so late!"  
"have you lost it?" Umi asked, rising an eyebrow  
"no way! I've so many things to do! And the old mage asked me to bring him breakast!"  
"oh don't worry I—"  
"Umi, darling, please take care of this stuff!" the dancer cut off Presea and put the tray in Umi's hands  
"but—"  
"thank you honey! Presea, come with me, I need your wise advices on a veeery important matter" Caldina exclaimed, literally dragging the smith out of the room.  
Then she turned to Umi  
"you owe me, missy" she hissed.

* * *

"not now, I'm working"  
Distraction was the last thing he needed. There was someone claiming their land sleeping in one of the guest rooms of that very same palace and he didn't even know how to tell Ferio that Cephiro was in danger _again_.  
"well then, keep starving"  
Umi's voice.  
Clef sighed from the other side of the door and with one of his spells made the door open. As she stepped in he didn't know if his heart felt relieved or more anxious. A part of him wanted to open up to her and tell her what was happening, the other part of him wanted to keep her in the dark. Talking to Umi had always had a calming effect on him, probably he needed her visits more than she needed his potions, but this time was different, he didn't want her to risk her life for Cephiro again. Well, her and the other two Kinghts' lives, of course.  
"Good morning" Umi muttered, carefully avoiding to look at him.  
After the events of the night before, she still was unconfortable.  
"good morning" he answered, piling up some papers making some room for the breakfast.  
The Water Knight placed the tray on the desk and poured some tea in the cup.  
She could feel Clef's eyes on her, examining every move she was making. Nervousness got the best of her and, with trembling hands, she accidentally spilled some tea on the papers.  
"I'm sorry!" she exclaimed, immediately grabbing a handkerchief to clean up the mess.  
Even so, the paper was now impossibile to read.  
Clef took it in his hands, without saying a word and studied it carefully  
"sorry" the girl apologized once again, casting her eyes down "I just wanted to be helpful" she muttered.  
The mage sighed and touched the paper with the tip of his staff  
"here, it's all good now" he reassured her, showing her the document.  
"oh, lucky me, for a moment I thought you'd kicked me out of here" the Master Mage rose an eyebrow  
"do you think I would really do it?"  
"well, you have quite a temper"  
"...said Lady Umi Hot-Temper Ryuuzaki"  
"well I'm sorry if it bothers you so much!" the Mage rolled his eyes  
"Umi not again, please"  
"it is you who started it!"  
"Umi..."  
"really, it's always the same old story! I'm sorry ok? I'm sorry to be _like this_!"  
"Umi, we already discussed about it and—"  
"I tried to change Clef, I swear I did. I tried to be more quiet, to not lose my temper so easily, to be more adult...to be _worth of you_" her eyes fixed on his.  
Worth of him. Did she have any clue of what she was saying? Of what she had set in motion inside him? Probably not. But maybe it was time to explain her. To tell her.  
"Umi..."  
"excuse me Clef, I must go now" he reached up to grab her wrist bust she quickly moved away and run to the door  
"Umi, wait!" but she didn't listen to him, she didn't want to hear what he had to say, there was no chance he could tell her what she wanted and needed to hear.  
She reached out to pull the door open but from the other side someone pushed it to her face  
"ouch!" she exclaimed.  
A tall man looked at her  
"I apologize, my lady" he said  
"I...watch your step!" she spat, running away.

* * *

Clef's blood froze in his veins as he caught the way Arashi was looking at the Water Knight.

"What are you doing here?"  
"I'm sorry, looks like I got in the middle of _something_" that hateful smirk formed on his lips  
"I have much work to do, what do you want?" the King of Iris summoned a chair for himself  
"who was that girl?" he asked, sitting down  
"it'snothing of your business"  
"maybe you're right, but I can't help it when I see a beautiful woman getting so upset"  
"she is still a kid" the Mage defensively pointed out  
"her body suggests otherwise"

Without thinking twice, Clef stood up and pointed his staff against him  
"I will tell you only once, so listen carefully: stay away from Umi" he barked.  
The man grabbed the staff and set it aside  
"oh, so she must be the Water Knight"  
"how do you—"  
"I heard that the Magic Knights are earthlings, umi means _sea _in her native language, isn't it?"  
"Stay away from her. Stay away from the Magic Knights" the Master Mage hissed.  
Arashi sighed and shook his haed  
"so, I came here to talk to Ferio, where is he?"  
"he's too busy to be disturbed"  
"again? My patiente has a limit, Guru, call him"  
"no"  
"well then, I will retire in my room"

_Umi chan!_ Hikaru's voice coming from the garden reached them through the open window

"or I could go take a stroll in the garden, it's such a lovely day, isn't it?" he smirked again.  
Clef sighed and gave in  
"I'll call the King" he said, eventually.

The Master Mage closed his eyes and focused on Ferio's spirit.

* * *

The boy was lazily napping on the grassof the back yard of the royal palace, Fuu was by his side, practicing at Cephirian language.

_"Ferio"_  
_"Clef, what's wrong?"_  
_"I need you in my study right now"_  
_"what's wrong?"_  
_"we received a diplomatic visit last night"_  
_"you can handle this stuff like no one in Cephiro..."_  
_"not this time"_  
_"what's happening?"_  
_"we're on the verge of a new war_"  
"WHAT?!" he shouted aloud

Fuu rose his eyes from the book she was reading  
"Ferio, are you ok?"  
"ah, yes sure, don't worry, I just hum...forgot I have to talk to Clef for some hum...King stuff, you know what I mean" the Wind Knight rose her eyebrow  
"what are you hiding?" the boy sighed and kissed her forehead  
"I must go now, see you later"

* * *

He slammed open the doors of Clef's study  
"hands off of our Kingdom!" he shouted.  
Arashi smirked and without even standing up to greet him, said  
"King Ferio, I presume. It's a honour to meet you"  
"skip these bullshits already!"  
"Ferio!" Clef angily exclaimed, pushing him down a chair to calm him down.  
"you forgot to teach diplomacy and good manners to your pupil" Arashi commented  
"there's no diplomacy or good manners with people like you, now go back to your country and don't even try to step on our Kingdom again" Ferio barked  
"I don't think I will have to" then he looked at Clef "on the contrary be sure and careful no one of your _friends_ steps on mine" the sorcerer didn't like the light in his eyes  
"you won't dare" he hissed  
"challenge me"  
"that's enough, out of my study and out of my Country!" the Master Mage shouted.  
Ferio looked at both of them, confused and surprised by Clef's sudden reaction. This wasn't from him, he never heard him shouting to someone, especially using all that rage.  
"Clef, what's happening?"  
"stay out of this, Ferio. And you" he said, turning to Aarashi "you better stay away from—"  
"this is a war, Guru. And everyone knows all is fair in love and war"  
"thank the Spirits I can hold back my instincts and won't send any spell against you. Now get off my sight" the man just smirked, and walked out of the room.  
"as you wish, Clef"

* * *

When Arashi left, Clef collapsed on his chair, his head in his hands  
"Clef, what happened? What did he mean?" the mage sighed  
"call Lantis, tell him to set up the best army we have"  
"Clef..."  
"please Ferio, do as I told you"  
"we shoud tell the Magic—"  
"no"  
"what? The girls are our secret weapon, with the help of the Mashins they can—"  
"I told you that Umi, Fuu and Hikaru will stay out of this. Was I clear?"

Ferio sighed and placed a hand on Clef's shoulder

"so even the Guru of Cephiro have a weak point" the Master Mage sighed  
"I don't want them to risk their life for us again"  
"I understand. But Fuu is going to be the Queen of this Kingdom and she has the right to know. I won't tell her for now, but if thigs get worse I will alert her and ask for the Magic Knights' help"  
Clef fatherly smiled  
"your words are wise, maybe you don't need me and my guidance anymore"  
"don't be stupid, we all need you. Maybe someone more than the others"  
"Ferio—"  
"I hope you will behave as the wise man we all know" the boy commented.

* * *

"No you can't understand, it was so embarassing I don't even know why I told him those things" Umi said, hiding her face in her hands. Hikaru placed a hand on her knee  
"you did well, so now he knows"  
"that's the point! I didn't want it to happen!" the bluette exclaimed, biting her nails.  
"Umi chan, go back and talk to him. If you don't listen to what he has to say, you will never know"  
"I'm afraid" the girl confessed  
"it's normal" Hikaru commented  
"it's easy for you. You are so bright and cute, lovely and caring while I'm so...so..._me_"  
"and you are an amazing person, look at yourslef! You are beautiful and determined and headstrong...you're full of passion and so brilliant! You are Ryuuzaki Umi, for Rayearth's sake! Every girl in Tokyo would kill to be like you!"  
Umi sighed  
"it's not so great to be me. It sucks most of the time. I continously piss people out, I'm bitchy and blunt and loud and—"  
"and that's what makes you _you_! We love our noisy Umi!"  
"I don't know..." Hikaru held her in a sisterly embrace  
"hey, don't let that old mage get you down. Go meet him in that stupid library and listen to what he has to say"

"I'm not in the right mood" the bluette admitted.  
Hikaru sighed  
"Umi-chan, please, smile. Do it for me, please?" the Water Knight's lips curved in a weak smile  
"this is the best I can do for now"  
"we'll work on it" the Fire Knight replied.  
"I must go to meet Lantis now, do you want to come with me?"  
"no, thank you, I want to spend some time alone"  
"ok, but please cheer up"  
"I will try, I promise" Umi said.

* * *

She was alone, watching her reflection in the water of the fountain of the garden.  
She wanted so badly to believe in Hikaru's words, but everytime she tried to reach out to Clef, something went wrong. If only he could accept her for the girl she was.  
"excuse me" an unknown voice ended her thoughts.  
She turned towards the stranger and recognized the man who lite rally pushed Clef's door to her face  
"oh, it's you" she said, clearly annoyed  
"yes, let me introduce myself, I'm Arashi, King of Iris" he lightly held her hand and kissed it in a very gallantly way. The Water Knight found herself blushing, she was completely surprised by that gesture.  
"I— what are you doing?" she wanted to sound sharp but she was so flattered that it came out with a giggle  
"apologizing for what happened earlier in the Master Mage's study"  
"oh, it was nothing"  
"I'm really sorry, you looked so upset when you run away earlier, I couldn't leave Cephiro without apologizing"  
"no, it wasn't your fault at all, I'm sorry I gave you the impression you have somehow bothered me" she casted down her stare as her cheeks started burning red.  
What was she doing? Flirting there with a total stranger, right after an arguement with Clef.  
Not that the arguement was important, it was not like there was something between her and the mage but...  
"may I know your name?"  
"Umi. Ryuuzaki Umi" she answered with a smile, finally gathering up the courage and looking at the man in front of her.  
She studied him: he had an elegant presence, very composed, quite similar to Lantis' one. She was sure enough he had to be a good swordsman. His hair was dark, but she couldn't tell if it was a very dark and deep brown or black. The thing that immediately caught her attention were his eyes. They were green and bright, even brighter than Ascot's.  
His thin lips curved in a smile  
"Umi. You know, in a far away planet, somewhere in another dimension, this word means _sea_. It's lovely" he commented.  
Her eyes widened  
"how do you know it?"  
"I like to learn about the other worlds" he explained  
"you see, I'm from that planet. It's called Earth and it's very different from this world, there is no magic there, no magical beasts, no floating mountains...compared to Cephiro is almost awful"  
"but by seeing you, I can say that earthlings must be lovely"  
Umi felt herself blushing again  
"thank you"  
"I'm just telling the truth. And you have a beautiful name, I love the ocean but on Iris, my homeplanet, it doesn't exist" he sadly told her  
"no ocean? I don't mean to be rude, but this sounds terrible!"  
"Iris is a small planet closet o Chizeta, and our climate is so dry that we can't even imagine the ocean. We only have some small river that ends up in some small lake. Nothing more"  
"it's so sad..." the Water Knight commented  
"it is indeed. But maybe you could bring us some drop of ocean honoring me with your presence"  
"me?"  
"yes, I would love having you as my guest"  
"oh...I don't know what to say…" she was really embarassed now  
"ah pardon me, I was too blunt, I didn't mean to startle you or make you feel embarassed"  
"no it's ok...I mean, thank you, it would be a pleasure to visit your country" she coyly smiled "you know, I'm the Magic Knight of Water, so I think I can set up a diplomatic visit soon"  
"the Water Knight? I should've immagine it, your name tells it all"  
"you really like it, don't you?"  
"well, a beautiful name for a beautiful woman" he answered  
"I...thank you" the man smiled  
"well, I have to go back to my country now. Goodbye Umi, Magic Knigh of Water" he bowed to her "I hope to see you soon" he added kissing her hand again.  
"It will be a pleasure meeting you again" she returned the smile and lightly bowed as well, before seeing him disappearing at the snap of his fingers.


	5. Arguing

**Disclaimer:** MKR and its chapters belong to CLAMP. I do owe just Arashi and what's related to him.

**Notes:** Hope you are actually finding this better than the old version

* * *

**-CHAPTER 5: _Arguing_-**

"I don't like him" Fuu stated, crossing her arms.  
"why not?" Hikaru asked, looking outside of her friend's window, towards Umi and that stranger  
"I don't know, there's something wrong in him" the Wind Knight answered.  
She grimaced as that man bowed to the Water Knight and kissed her hand before disappeaearing  
"that's utterly disgusting"  
"I find it nice, Umi looks so pleased..."  
"Umi won't fall for such stupid stuff" Hikaru rose her eyebrow  
"I don't know..."  
"well, _I do_. Now you'll excuse me" Fuu ended the discussion and marched to the garden.

* * *

Umi was still there, looking blankly before head with a silly look on her face

"Cephiro to Umi, Cephiro to Umi" Fuu called, startling the bluette  
"oh it's you" she said  
"oh I'm sorry I'm not your new prince in shining armour"  
"I don't know what you're talking about" Umi spat, but the blush that flashed across her cheeks was telling otherwise.  
"I saw you from my room. You know, it's just there, in case you forgot" the blond Knight pointed her balcony with a finger  
"I know"  
"I know you do. What I don't know is who was that man with you"  
"oh no one..."  
"well you seemed pretty caught up in the moment for a simple no one"  
Umi was about to lose her nerves, but Hikaru's voice avoided a fight  
"Umi chan!"  
"Karu!" the Water Knight greeted her  
"who was him?" the Fire Knight asked straight.  
Umi sighed and rolled her eyes  
"ok, ok, you won. His name is Arashi and he's a king"  
"A king?!" both Umi's friends asked at one voice  
"yes, he comes from Iris, a planet not far from Chizeta" the bluette explained.  
Fuu scratched her chin  
"I think I heard of it, they say that it is pretty small but Irisians are formidable warriors"  
"I don't know, I never heard of it before" Hikaru commented, leaning against a tree.  
"How did you meet him?" Fuu asked  
"what's this interrogation about?" Umi snarled  
"oh c'mon, we're curious, just tell us!" the red haired Knight said  
"we bumped into each other in Clef's study" she unwillingly answered  
"and he came here looking for you? That's so cute!" Hikaru exclaimed happily  
"wait, why was he looking for you?"  
"is it so strange that someone likes me so much to do it?" the bluette snapped  
"this is not what I'm saying and you know it so don't even try to put up a fight, ok?"  
"girls, please stop it!" Hikaru exclaimed, then she turned to Umi  
"I'm happy for you Umi-chan"  
"thanks" she muttered, then she looked at Fuu and sighed "but she's right, he came looking for me for a specific reason" the Wind Knight smirked and sat down on the grass  
"I'm all ears"  
"I argued with Clef this morning"  
"I know, you already told me" Hikaru commented  
"why was I left out of all this?" the Wind Knight was clearly disappointed  
"I didn't mean to keep you in the dark, just things happened before I could tell you..." Fuu sighed  
"what happened?"  
"she told Clef she wanted to be worth of him and then run away without listening to what he had to say" Hikaru briefly explained  
"Umi!"  
"he told me I'm hot-tempered!"  
"how could he?" Fuu sarcarstically asked, rolling her eyes  
"I'll pretend I didn't hear you" the bluette commented "anyway, the thing is that while I was going away, Arashi literally slammed the door of Clef's study on my nose and then came to me to apologize. That's all."  
"I see" Fuu still wasn't convinced.  
"It was really nice from him" Hikaru said with a wide smile "what did you talked about?"  
"oh nothing much...this, that...you know, stuff..."  
"a very deep conversation" the Wind Knight commented  
"what's your problem?!" Umi angrily asked  
"I don't have any problem, I think that it must have been a this and that stuff very deep to let you there in a total daze with a blush on your face and that silly smile"  
"Fuu stop it now!"  
"I'm only describing what I saw!"  
"stop it!" Hikaru exclaimed, stopping an imminent fight.  
She turned to Umi  
"if it's too personal we won't ask further"  
"how personal can two total strangers get in five minutes?" Fuu exasperatedly asked  
"personal enough to invite me to Iris and tell me that I'm lovely, ok?!" Umi shouted.  
Then she immediately covered her mouth with her hand.  
"WHAT?!" Fuu asked, shocked  
"Umi chan it's fantastic!" the Fire Knight jumped up and hugged her friend  
"you are not going, are you?" the blonde asked  
"I don't know yet, but I admit that I'm tempted to accept his offer"  
"You can't!"  
"why not?"  
"you don't even know him! Who is he? Why did he came to Cephiro? Is Iris a safe place? Think twice, Umi!"  
"are you kidding me? I know him, he told me he is a King and came to Cephiro for a diplomatic visit, what the hell should I think twice about?!"  
"well, looks like Fuu chan isn't the only one who can attract a royal head!" Hikaru exclaimed, trying to change topic and avoid an arguemet  
"no, wait, this is totally different!" the Wind Knight snapped  
"huh? And why?" Umi angrily asked  
"Ferio is a good and trust worthy person, he saved us a lot of times and he really is a King"  
"what are you trying to say? That he lied?"  
"I'm saying that we should try to know more about him first!"  
"well I don't remember you bothering to know if that green haired wanderer we met in the Forest of Silence was actually the perfect man you just described!"  
"In case you forgot, I doubted of him at the beginning! And he didn't slammed a door on my nose, he helped us all out of the Forest of Silence!"  
"This is totally pointless" Umi exclaimed  
"You are using this situation to run away from Clef after what you just told him!" Fuu shouted.  
An icy silence fell in the garden, until Hikaru spoke  
"Umi chan, she didn't mean to—"  
"no, she meant it. You'll excuse me now, I have to go"  
"where are you going now?" Fuu asked  
"to Clef" Umi answered, walking away.

* * *

Umi was going to knock Clef's study door, but it roughly got open and a furious Ferio stormed off of it, almost bumping into her

"Ferio, you royal clumsiness watch your step!"  
His reaction completely surpised her: not a joke, not a smile, not a wink. He just placed his hand on her shoulder and apologized  
"forgive me, Umi"  
Confused, the girl entered the Master Mage's study only to find him sitting at his desk, his face hidden in his hands  
"Clef, are you ok?" he didn't reply, only made a quick gesture with a hand and sighed.  
Umi sighed back and smiled bitterly  
"'kay, got it, I'm sorry I disturbed you"  
Clef heard her footstep getting distant and rose up his head to look at her: Arashi was right, she wasn't a child anymore, it was useless to keep telling himself otherwise.  
"wait" his voice was merely a whisper, but the girl heard him  
"are you sure?" he just nodded.  
Slowly, Umi approached the desk and crouched beside his chair  
"are you ok?" she asked, placing her hand on his knee, the mage didn't answer.  
He only rested his own hand upon hers.  
She wasn't a kid anymore. She was a woman. A beautiful, caring and headstrong woman. And he was deadly worried for her, that was the truth.  
"sorry Umi, I didn't mean to make you worried"  
"is there something I can do to make it better?" she genuinely asked and Clef couldn't help but gracing her with a sweet smile  
"this is enough, thank you" he answered, lightly caressing the back of her hand with his thumb.  
Umi looked at their hands and felt those familiar butterflies flying right in her stomach.  
She had clearly opened up to him earlier, was it his answer? Or was just a way to tell her that he was sorry but couldn't do more than this? What if Fuu was right and she just wanted to run away from him? In the end he was the Master Mage of Cephiro, his wisdom, kindness and powers were beyond human imagination, how could she only hope to be worth of him? Dreaming was easy, but she had to stick her feet to the ground, no matter how badly she wished for it, deep inside her she knew that there was no chance for her. He'd never considered her more than the most noisy and whimsical of his students.  
Her heart ached at that thought and she immediately retired her hand and stood up  
"do you need something?" Clef asked at that point  
"yes, I need your help to know more about this dimension" he nodded and summoned a chair with his magic. It didn't appear at the other side of his desk, but right next to his one. He made to th bluette sign to sit down and she obeyed.  
"What do you want to know, exactly?" he asked, grabbing a huge book with a heavy brown leather cover  
"well, you see, I want to know about other planets around here"  
Clef shot his head up and looked right into her eyes  
"you met _him_, didn't you?" his tone was almost accusative and it made Umi nervous. How did he dare to talk to her like that?!  
"if by _him_ you mean that fine man that came to me to apologize for almost breaking my nose with your stupid door then yes, I met him" she spat  
"I will tell you only once, Umi: stay away from that man"  
she stood up  
"you have no right to tell me such things!" she indignantly exclaimed  
"you know absolutely nothing about him, stay away from him"  
"oh and I guess you perfectly know him, don't you?"  
"can you just listen to me and trust me for once? I know him better than you can imagine and—"  
"oh of course you do, you are the great Master Mage Clef, you know everything!" she sarcastically spat.  
"Umi..." as usual, she was quickly draining his patience  
"no, shut up and listen to me old mage: you know what? I don't give a damn about what you have to say about him, I don't care. To me he was so nice and gentle and you have no right to come here and tell me who can or can't spend my time with!"  
Enough.  
Clef stood up as well, he was surprise at how he could now tower her with his adult body  
"You are right Umi, I am the Master Mage of this Land, I lived over seven centuries and I know everything that has to be known in this world. That's why I forbid you to only even think to talk again to that man, was I clear?" he didn't shout, but Umi never heard his voice being so firm and angry.  
She didn't answer, only glared at him and made her way to the door. Before she could open it, Clef grabbed her wrist  
"Umi, I wasn't joking. You will never see him again, was I clear?"  
"screw you, and all your stupid opinions Clef! You know what? I'm going to Iris!" she shouted  
"I forbid you to do it!" he shouted back  
"you can't tell me what to do!"  
"on the contrary I can, I am the Master Mage and I have the duty to watch over those who must protect my kingdom!"  
"well, screw also your stupid rank!"  
"Umi don't dare to talk this way to me!"  
"and you don't dare to treat me as one of your inferiors!" she yelled.  
Clef couldn't believe it. Now she was even accusing him of being some sort of despot.  
He sighed to regain his composure  
"Umi, please, listen to me, I'm trying to protect you"  
"from what Clef?!"  
"this dimension isn't as safe as it seems. There are many dangers that can affect Cephiro and its habitants, people are not as good as you may think, we're in constant danger, I don't want to—"  
"ah so that's the point! You won't risk having your defence lowered as I go away!"  
"what the hell are you talking about?! You've been away for so long that I even lost the count, this is totally pointless!"  
"really? Because this is the only way I can see it. In case of sudden danger, how Hikaru and Fuu are supposed to summon the whole Mashin, as we did for Emeraude if I'm not here?!"  
"don't talk about what happened to the Princess, that was a whole different story, you know it!"  
"yes I know! I even know how you wanted to _protect_ us and ended up making us murder two innocent people!"  
her hands flew to her mouth as she realized what she had just said.  
Clef looked at her with wide eyes, her words kept echoing in his ears for a good minute before he finally found his voice  
"go away" he hissed  
"Clef, I'm sorry, you know I didn't mean it" he just turned his back to her and walked to his desk  
"out of my library" she run after him and grabbed him by the shoulder  
"Clef, I wasn't thinking, you know I never blamed you for it, I—"  
"that's the point, you don't think!" he shouted turning to face her "this has nothing to do with Emeraude, it has nothing to do with Cephiro or the Magic Knights! This is only about _us_!"  
_Us_? Umi's eyes widened in stupor.  
"I'm worried for you! I know how you are, always so...passionate and...impetuous in everything you do, I want you safe and out of danger and not because I'm the Master Mage and you are a Magic Knight but because I am me and I truly care about you! But if you can't even understand it and keep throwing at my face what happen with Emeraude, we're going nowhere"  
To keep herself from bursting in crying right there in front of him, Umi bit her lips so hard that she thought they'd start bleeding  
"Clef, I—"  
"I think of Emeraude every single day, Umi. I raised her as if she was my daughter, I educated her, _I introduced Zagato to her_. I saw them falling in love and giving up on their lives for each other. I saw Lantis running away from this world that was going to take his precious brother away from him. I saw you giving away your innocence fulfilling your task. Only the gods know how I still feel about what happened and you have no right to come here to accuse me" he wasn't even angry, his voice only showed delusion and deep sadness  
"forgive me" she whispered, her eyes casted down.  
He sighed, a part of him wanted to hug her and tell her that everything was fine, but this time she had crossed the line. Talking about Emeraude and Zagato had somehow left him empty. Maybe if he'd explained them what was going on, what they really had to do, Emeraude and Zagato would have been still alive. And those young girls would have kept their innocence. Maybe it really was all his fault, after all. Maybe he really wasn't able to protect the people he loved, no matter if they were his pupils or the Pillar or three young girls from another world.  
"Go away Umi. Do as you please, in the end it looks like you are right: no matter how much I do care, I am not able to keep you safe."  
"Clef, please..."  
"there's nothing else to talk about. Now leave" he said, going back to his work. Umi didn't reply, she silently walked to the door and left the room.  
Upon hearing the door getting shut behind Umi, he finally rose his eyes from the paper and hid his face in his hands.  
Where did he go wrong?


End file.
